"When people ask her how she got her name "Mankiller," she often just smiles and says "I earned it!" Actually, it's a Cherokee Indian title that means "someone who watches over villagers."

Wilma Mankiller was elected and re-elected principal chief of the Cherokees, Oklahoma's largest tribe, and served 10 years. Now 59, she still travels the country, working to improve the status of Indians.

This week, she counseled 24 native college students from 10 states at the annual American Indian journalism seminars here at the University of South Dakota."

Get the Story:
Al Neuharth: She's a 'Mankiller' who inspires natives (USA Today 6/17)

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